Jean-Jacques Dessalines
Entry ID
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10 (04/01/2022)
Formal title of the work
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Jean-Jacques Dessalines
Description of the sculpture
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A stylized portrait bust of the Haitian Revolutionary leader and later ruler of an independent Haiti, Jean-Jacques Dessalines. He is depicted wearing a military uniform and a transverse bicorne hat. The integral base consists of an oval-section column raised on a two-step rectangular base inscribed with the sitter's name.
URLs where this is recorded/available
Type of object
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Bust – Portrait
Base
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Base present - appears to be the original base
Dimensions
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Height: 37 cm
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Width: ?
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Depth: ?
Materials
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Wood (unidentified)
Specific techniques used
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Carving
Overall colour
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Monochrome – brown
Inscriptions
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Front of base: 'J. J. DESSALINE[S]'
Does the Black person have a specific identity?
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Identifiable: specific individual
Identity of Black person (real or fictive)
Attributes
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Stylised military uniform
Role within sculpture
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Main protagonist
Gender
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Male
Age
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Adult
Status
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Noble
Clothing
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Wearing clothes – European/Western clothing
Evidence of enslavement
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None
Evidence of 'exotic' status
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None
Action or activity
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Not relevant (head)
Emotional state
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Neutral/emotionless
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Noble/proud
Focus of gaze of Black person
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Looking outwards (engaging viewer)
Sculptural context
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No location included/implied
Period of production
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Nineteenth century (1800-1899)
Date of Production
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Presumably c. 1804-1806 when Dessalines was ruler of Haiti
Date inferred from
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Other
Original purpose
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Commemorative
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Didactic / Propagandistic
Original display setting
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Unknown
Current owner
Current / most recently known location
Accession number
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ZBA2482
Provenance history
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2002: acquired by the National Maritime Museum as part of the Michael Graham-Stewart Slavery Collection
Notes
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The artist as well as place and date of production for this sculpture are currently unknown. This bust is part of the Michael Graham-Stewart Slavery Collection, which was acquired by the National Maritime Museum in 2002 with the assistance of the Heritage Lottery Fund.
Current rights holder
License terms for reuse
‘Jean-Jacques Dessalines’ (no date), Black People in European Sculpture, accessed May 5, 2025, http://13.41.147.145/s/database/item/205
